Railway-appliance interlock.



S. COLE.

RAILWAY APPLIANCE INTERLOCK.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 14. 1916.

l ,254, 1 Q 1 Patented Jan. 22, 1918.

m5 rf/r 70/? 5 70/1 55 (04 I6) STOKES COLE, OF MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA,

RAILWAY-APPLIANCE IN TERLOCK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented J an. 22, 1918.

Application filed July 14, 1916. Serial No. 109,360.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, Sroxns COLE, a subject of the King of Great Britain, and resident of the city of Montreal, Province of Quebec, Canada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Railway-Appliance Interlocks, and do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

In conducting a railroad certain restric tions as to the operation of railway appliances have to be observed to insure the proper carrying out of orders and prevent accidents. For instance in setting signals, opening or closing switches and placing or removing derails it is necessary that the appliances should be operated in a certain sequence and attachments are provided to so interlock the appliances that their operation in improper succession is prevented.

This invention relates to the above men. tioned interlocking attachments and has for an object to simplify the construction and operation of same and avoid the necessity for extensive costly installations.

The above with further objects and advantages will be hereinafter more fully described and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

For full comprehension, however, of my invention reference should be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, in which similar reference characters indicate the same parts and wherein:

Figure 1 illustrates in perspective the application of my improved interlock to a railway appliance;

Figs. 2, 3, 4, and 5 are longitudinal vertical sections of the lock illustrating the different positions in the operation of same;

Fig. 6 is a perspective of the key; and

Fig. 7 is a diagrammatical view of the application of the interlock.

The lock in detail consists of a box 2 having a bottom depression 3 which forms a shelf 4 near the front of the box, a cover et removably fastened by bolts 5 and a front opening 6 for the snug and slidable admission of the inner end of a plunger 7 the bot tom of opening 6 being flush with the shelf 4. The inner end of the plunger preferably has its upper surface scarfed at 8 to present a shoulder 9, the outer end being forked at 10 and provided with holes 11 or otherwise suitably prepared for attachment to the reciprocating bar 12 of a switch standard 13 or other appliance as shown in Fig. 1.

A vertically swinging latch 14 is pivoted at its rear end within the box by means of a pin 15 which extends transversely through the sides of the box near the rear end of the latter and above the level of shelf 1, cam projection 16 extending downwardly from the underside of the latch near the outer or free end of the latter and at a shorter distance from pivot pin 15 than is the shelf 4, such cam projection being downwardly tapered by inclining opposite sides 17 thereof outwardly from the latch in opposite directions longitudinally of the latter and in the lower position the free end is adapted to obstruct opening 6, the cam projection extending into depression 3 clear of the shelf.

A hole 18 extends through one side of the box to the depression 3 at a point adjacent shelf 4; for the admission of a key 19, the key hole extending forwardly from near the bottom of the depression diagonally upward, at approximately the same inclination as the front inclined side of the tapered cam projection, to a point above the level of shelf 4. When the key is inserted the bit 20 thereof which is of greater depth than the depth of depression?) is disposed adjacent the tapered projection 16 and adapted when turned to the rear to engage this projection and, working over same, raise the front end of the latch out of its obstructing position across opening 6, the combined depth of projection 16 and bit 20 being sufficient to raise the underside of the front end or head 17 of the latch above the top of the opening.

The locks are specially adapted for use in pairs with one key for each pair and Fig. 7 illustrates their use in connection with a switch 21 and derail 22, one lock having its plunger attached to the switch rod 23 and its open front end adjacent the track so that when the switch is being closed the consequent outward movement of the rod 23 will move plunger 7 inward and the other lock having its plunger 7 attached to the derail rod 24 and its open front end away from the track so that as the derail is being placed upon the track the consequent outward movement of rod 24 will move plunger 7 outward.

With the switch closed and the derail in place as illustrated, the switch plunger 7 is inside its box across the key-hole and the depression 3 thus, as seen in Fig. 2, extend-v ing over the key 19 and holding same against movement to bring the bit into register with the key-hole for withdrawal.

The derail plunger 7 is out of its box and locked against inward movement by the latch, see Fig. 3, thuslocking the derail against removal from the track.

As will be understood it is necessary for safety that the switch should be opened before the derail is removed and the arrangement just described insures this proper succession because the derail operating rod 24 cannot be moved inwardly to displace the derail until the derail plunger 7 is free to move into the box. l Vhile the plunger 7 can be freed by the insertion of key 1%), Fig.- l, to raise the restraining latch, Fig. 5, yet

the key can only be withdrawn from the switch'lock box by withdrawing the switch plunger 7 from the position over the key and this withdrawal of plunger 7 is accomplished only by operating rod 23 inwardly to open the switch. Similarly the derail has to be replaced upon the track before the switch can again be closed as the key is, by. the removal of the derail and consequent inward movement of plunger 'F-reta'ined in the box of the derail lock until the outward movement of plunger 7 consequent upon the replacement of the derail.

From the above it will be seen that a simply constructed and operated lock is provided for so interlocking appliances as to insure their operation only in a prescribed sequence and without incurring the expense and labor-of installing actual connections between the appliances.

What I claim is as follows:

1. A lock for a railway appliance, consisting of a box having an opening therein at its frontend and a key-hole, a plunger slidably located in the opening and adapted to be attached at its outer end to the railway appliance, a pivoted latch within the box and having its free end adjacent the front opening and adapted in its lower position to. obstruct the opening to prevent the entry of the plunger into the box and a key adapted to be inserted through the key-hole beneath the latch and raise same from itsobstructing position;

2. A look for a railway appliance consisting of a box having an opening therein, a

plunger slidably located in the opening, a' pivoted latch within the box and adapted in itsflower position to obstruct the opening and prevent the entry of the plunger into the box, such latch having a cam projection upon its underside and a key adapted to be inserted in the box, engage the cam projection and raise the latch from its obstructin position.

3. A look for a railway appliance consist ing of a box having an opening in the front,

in the front opening, apivoted latch within the box and adapted to have its free end extend over the. front opening and prevent the entry of the plunger into the box, a cam projection upon the underside of the latchat a point in rear of the key-hole and akey adapted to be inserted through the key-hole into the depression to a position between th front opening and cam projection.

4. A lock for a railway appliance, consisting of a box having a front opening therein a depression and a key-hole leading to the depression, an interior shelf between the; Icy-hole and inner end of the front opening, a plunger slidably located in the frontopen-j. ing, the inner end of the plunger being. adapted to enter the box and the front end being adapted to be attached to the railway appliance, a latch pivoted within and near the rear of the box and at a point above the level of the shelf, the free end of the latch being adapted to swing from a pointextend ing across the front opening to a point above same and a downwardly tapered projection upon the underside of the latch at a point i in rear of thekey-hole.

5. A look for a railway appliance, consisting of a box having an opening in the front, a bottom depression extending below the front opening and a key-hole leading to projection and raising the latch above the,"

front opening, and a projection upon the underside of the latch at a point in rear of the key-hole, the front and rear surfa'cesiof the projection being downwardly inclined in opposite directions longitudinally. of the I) latch and a plunger slidaloly located in the front opening and having an inward move ment over the shelf and depression, the outer end of the plunger being adapted to beattached to the railway appliance. I v

6. A lock for a railway appliance, consisting of a box having an opening in the front,

a bottom depressionv extending below the front opening and a key-hole leading to the. depression and inclining upwardly to a point above the bottom level of the front opening, .a shelf extending inwardly fronr and level with thebottomof the front opening at a point between the latter and the key-hole, a latch within the box and pivote d near the rear of same ata point above the shelf level, the free end of the latch extending to a point over the shelf and across the front opening and a projection upon the underside of the latch at a point in rear of the key-hole, the front and rear surfaces of the projection being downwardly inclined in 0pposite directions longitudinally of the latch, a plunger slidably located in the front opening, the inner end of the plunger being adapted to engage and be obstructed by the free end of the latch and the outer end of the plunger being adapted to be attached to the railway appliance, and a key adapted to be inserted through the key-hole to have its bit engage said projection and raise the free end of the latch above the front opening and out of its obstructing position.

7. The combination with a railway appliance, of a lock therefor consisting of a box having an opening therein at one end and a key-hole, a plunger slidably located in the opening and attached at its outer end to the railway appliance, a pivoted latch within the box and having its free end adjacent the inner end of the opening and adapted in its lower position to obstruct said opening and prevent the entry of the plunger into the boX and a key adapted to be inserted through the key-hole beneath the latch and raise the front end of same from its obstructing position. r

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification.

STOKES COLE.

Copies of this patent may berobtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

